A Flushing woman has been indicted by a Queens grand jury on murder, burglary and gun charges for killing a Whitestone man who was discovered dead in her bed in September 2021.
Haiyan Deng, 31, was arraigned Monday before Queens Supreme Court Justice Ushir Pandit-Durant on a nine-count indictment after she was extradited from New Mexico after fleeing Queens, where she allegedly shot and killed her boyfriend in her 39th Avenue apartment on Sept. 18, according to Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz.
According to the indictment, Deng shot and killed Justin Li, of Whitestone, in her bedroom on Sept. 18. First responders conducting a wellness check on the 26-year-old victim found him deceased in the defendant’s bed. He was bleeding from a single gunshot wound to the head and was discovered late in the day on Sept. 19.
Katz said that Deng had fled the scene and was later apprehended in New Mexico on Sept. 24 after the car she was driving broke down on the side of a road. New Mexico State Troopers recovered a loaded revolver allegedly from Deng’s car which was a ballistic match to the bullet recovered in her Flushing bedroom. Deng was also allegedly found to be in possession of the victim’s personal property.
Deng was held by law enforcement authorities in New Mexico until she could be extradited back to Queens.
“The defendant is accused of shooting the victim in the head, then taking his car to flee the state,” Katz said. “Gun violence is never the solution. The defendant has been returned to Queens. She now faces very serious charges.”
Justice Pandit-Durant ordered Deng to return to court on Feb. 3. If convicted, Deng faces up to 25 years to life in prison.
